A Precarious Situation
by MidnightMoonEdocsil
Summary: Sesshoumaru almost drowns.
1. Chapter 1

A Precarious Situation

Jesse(Thats me) typed through Sesshomaru and Miroku's POVs

Deanna(friend) typed through Jaken, Rins and Inuyasha's POVs

We didnt know what the other was going to say or do, and had to just roll with it. So if it gets strange or bad, sorry about that. Its not complete yet. We own nothing.

Summery: Sesshoumaru almost drowned.

**(Jaken's POV)**

_Oh, this is such an embarrassing situation. If he were to die like this..._

I knew that I'd probably be beaten, possibly killed, for going to get that insufferable hanyou's help, especially considering the circumstances... but, I couldn't just let Sesshoumaru-sama die like that. Rin probably would have killed herself after, and I didn't want to be left all alone. _This is awful!_

As I crested the hill of the village, I scanned the surrounds quickly. The moment I started down the hill I'd probably start tumbling, even though I'd left nintoujou behind. I spotted that hanyou and the monk walking toward the village from the road, carrying bundles of rice.

"Inuyasha-sama!" I shouted, feeling dirty for giving him a much higher position than he deserved. I ran toward him, trying to keep my balance. He appeared to have noticed me, since when I sat up after tumbling down the hill, he was standing above me.

"What is it, toad?" That smirk, oh, I couldn't stand it!

"Sesshoumaru-sama needs help! He'll die!" Mentally I smacked myself, but he could have already been dead by now.

The hanyou's face paled and he picked me up by my shirt (it hurt), dropping the bales. He took off running the direction I had come, probably following my scent trail (though his nose wasn't nearly as good as Sesshoumaru-sama's).

"What happened?" he asked (shouted) at me.

"Well, he saved Rin but he..." I left off as we arrived at the spot. Rin sat on the ground, crying, staring into the spot in the lake where she had vanished under the surface only minutes earlier. I was surprised at the hanyou's speed. He reached for Tessaiga as he dove into the water, and I hung my head in shame. He was expecting some sort of lake youkai. But he wouldn't find any save for my master.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru seemed to be floating, just a few feet under water, staring up at the surface. _Now this is perplexing.. _Sesshoumaru had never been in water as far back as he could remember, so when he pulled Rin out, the last thing he expected was to take her place.

He had kicked and thrashed (in a graceful way of course) in a attempt to resurface, only to find a horribly embarrassing conclusion... This Sesshoumaru.. was unable to swim. But he would never ever admit it to anyone (if he got out of this) he had the briefest of moments to wonder if he had even heard of a dog that couldn't swim, these thoughts only made his humility feel heavier on his shoulders. _At least __no one of any worth is here to see me in this situation.. I'd have to kill them just to save my reputation.._ A sudden splash toward shore caused Sesshoumaru to look around, his first thought being Rin trying a foolish attempt to save him. The last he thought he'd see would be Inuyasha swimming toward him with wide golden eyes staring at him in shock.._perfect.. I'm going to kill Jaken this time.._

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

Inuyasha couldn't make any sense of it. He looked around. He could clearly see Sesshoumaru in the water, but couldn't find his assailant. He couldn't tell if Sesshoumaru was unconscious, but the toad had mentioned something about saving Rin, so he couldn't have just passed out while flying over. Why would that happen anyway He reached Sesshoumaru, keeping his ears open for any signs of attack. He couldn't see any blood... He looked down at Sesshoumaru as he looped his arm around him. He was alive, but he wasn't trying to breathe anymore. It took a moment for Inuyasha to realize that the golden eyes looking into his own were not glazed over, but help the spark of consciousness.

He lifted them both above the surface, though it took quite a bit of effort. While Sesshoumaru himself wasn't very heavy, his armor and fur weighed a ton at least. He took a deep, gasping breath as Sesshoumaru closed his eyes.

_Don't you dare!_

He shook Sesshoumaru, but the bastard still wouldn't breathe. _Dammit!_ He heard splashing then, and glanced up quickly to find Miroku wading into the water. Holding Sesshoumaru tight to his body, he made his way to the shore as quickly as he could. Miroku was right. The middle of the lake was not the place to be doing this.

"Dammit, Sesshoumaru, don't you even think about dying on me..." He wasn't sure what else he could do. Maybe Miroku...

**(Miroku's POV)**

Miroku wading into the water watching Inuyasha and the seemingly unconscious Sesshoumaru, face showing concern for his friend. _Come on Inuyasha, don't be stupid.. bring __him in.. _he lowered his head slightly, a look of hopelessness for his friends mind who seemed as small as a child half Rins age at times.

Inuyasha finally made it to shore, Miroku reached out and helped drag Sesshoumaru further onto solid ground. Pushing Inuyasha aside roughly (with only a few curses as a reply) with his staff he went on auto pilot as he checked for Sesshoumarus pulse, it was faint but there. Miroku stared down at the demon laying before them._ His lungs.. they are filled with water.. I can tell._

Miroku knew what needed to be done. Taking a deep shaky breath, he trusted his staff into Inuyasha hands and stripped Sesshoumaru of his armor (with visible effort, and a few grunts) then placed his hands on his chest, pushing down and up once. _Ok.. you can do this.._ His face twisted in slight disgust at the thought of what he was about to do, as his hand repeated its earlier action, and he leaned down slightly, tilting Sesshoumaru's head up and back _Just close your eyes.. and pretend its a __beautiful woman your rescuing.. yes.. with a nice round..._ his lips connected and he proceeded to breath in air for Sesshoumaru. (Or in his mind, a beautiful young maiden.)

**(Rin's POV)**

Rin watched the scene with watery eyes. _Please don't die..._ She hadn't realized, when she carelessly didn't watch for a dropoff, that this was his one venerability. If she had, she never, ever would have gone into the water at all, unless Inuyasha-san was nearby to begin with. So Sesshoumaru-sama wouldn't have to...

Inuyasha-san watched Houshi-sama with wide eyes, words stuck on his tongue. Rin could tell he was upset, he didn't even bother with his disheveled state, or the water in his his ears, which Rin knew he hated.

She watched Sesshoumaru-sama's chest rise and fall with each breath that wasn't his, so afraid that it would be the last time she'd ever see such a simple action. Her own chest heaved with sobs. _I killed him._

No sooner did she have that thought that Sesshoumaru's eyes slid open, lazily at first, then wide at Houshi-sama over his mouth. He struggled to breathe, but still seemed unable. Houshi-sama hesitated, watching to see if he could manage. Sesshoumaru-sama's eyes slid closed again, in a way Rin-chan knew meant he would be passive, at least for now.

"Sesshoumaru..." Houshi-sama whispered, then sighed. He reached out and rolled Sesshoumaru on his side, hoping that action would help the youkai to breathe. He prayed to every God he could think of, hoping he wouldn't have to continue with Sesshoumaru now conscious.

Rin could no longer see his face, as he was rolled away from her, toward Inuyasha-san and Houshi-sama. She waited with bated breath as something seemed to catch in Sesshoumaru-sama's throat, and he began coughing violently, his body curling inward against his will. He was hurt. But he'd be okay. The worst of the damage would be to his pride.

She sighed, not noticing Jaken-sama's reaction, and turned away in respect as Sesshoumaru vomited up a large quantity of water. Inuyasha-san's swear made her smile a little. The smile faded as Sesshoumaru-sama gasped and coughed a bit more, but she tried to remind herself it was okay. It meant he was breathing. It meant he was alive.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru was having more difficulty then he would want to admit trying to regain his composure. He closed his eyes rolling onto his other side, waiting for his migraine to subside, mildly listening to his idiotic brother swearing in the background, and the monk trying to defend his action of putting his filthy, unworthy lips upon this Sesshoumaru's mouth. He started to grind his teeth together, the only reason the monk was still breathing was because Sesshoumaru knew why he did it and that he would have probably died if he hadn't. In a sense he was in the monks debt, but he shrugged that thought away, deciding sparing his filthy life payed it off. He flinched as a particularity loud swear from Inuyasha. _Does he really have to be loud all the time?_ Tilting his head slightly, he listened for Rin's heart rate, which was slowing steadily. He mentally sighed softly as he noted she was calming down from her earlier panic attack, to his relief, he wasn't in the mood to hear her worried, not to mentioned _high-pitched_ voice right now, not with his head pounding with fury at its last few minutes with lack of oxygen.

He growled softly, halting half way through it, stunned at how weak it sounded, even to him. The monk and his brother must have noticed as well because their conversation halted instantly, and to Sesshoumaru's slight grim satisfaction he glanced over his shoulder to see the monk stiffen slightly. That soon passed when he remembered why they were gawking at him. Sesshoumaru growled again in anger, more forcefully, only causing him to fall into another coughing fit that he struggled to hold in as much as possible, which only made him start to dry heave a few times.

Worried looks passed over the monk and Inuyasha's faces, the hanyou even daring to come to his side. Sesshoumaru turned away immediately, eyes narrowing dangerously before closing again as another wave of pain passed through his head. _Damn it.. why.. of all demons, hanyou's AND humans, did Inuyasha and the monk have to be here.. to __see this. This is.. This is.._ He mentally sighed, only having one word for this situation. _Pathetic._ He heard a shuffle near his legs, and a waft of Jaken's scent hit his nose. His anger reached new heights as the reason for the hanyou's and monks arrival caught his attention.

Reflexively his leg swung, kicking Jaken hard in the head, sending him flying a few yards away, a large lump already on his forehead from the connection. Sesshoumaru opened his eyes slightly, watching with a smirk at his work as Jaken flew away from him. At least he was able to kick him decently, even in this condition. Turning his eyes to the side again, he glanced at Inuyasha, who was still testing his existence by leaning over him, with that.. worried look.. Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes slightly. _Pity. This.. this HANYOU was daring to pity this Sesshoumaru? How.. Dare.. He._

Although he knew, that if Inuyasha hadn't come when he did, he would have joined his father in death, anger still sparked at the thought of it. He mentally slapped himself in the forehead, his mind moving back to his father. _How totally MORTIFYING would it have been.. to.. to EXPLAIN that to father. He at least died, in his mind, __a noble death._ Sesshoumaru thought about it for a moment, knowing he would feel like a child again if he was faced with the task of explaining a death like that to his father. _How would I even tell him? "Hello father, nice to see you again. Why am I here? I drowned trying to save a small human girl. So how have you been?"_

Sesshoumaru furrowed his eyebrows, already hearing his fathers laughter in his head. Oh of course he would have felt bad for his son, for being dead, but the death would have defiantly made his father look at him differently. (and maybe even chuckle.. every time he saw him) _Not that he looked at me in that great of a light to __begin with._ Sesshoumaru finally pushed the thoughts away completely, _It didn't happen at least.. but.._ He focused on Inuyasha again_Something just as horrid took its __place._ Sesshoumaru took a deep, raspy breath, giving Inuyasha the strongest glare he could muster at the moment (which wasn't as strong as he thought it was) and said in a low voice in a attempt to sound threatening, ignoring the fact that it cracked a little with his first three words,

"Just what are..."

He took another breath, his voice hardening and becoming more normal, though still low,

"..you so _fascinated_ about, _hanyou?_"

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

**Inuyasha was unable to resist the urge to stare stupidly at Sesshoumaru for a moment. _Fascinated…?_ After a moment he collected himself, and turned away with a "Keh! Who'd be fascinated with _you_?" He almost turned back around when Sesshoumaru coughed again. It wouldn't seem like much to anyone else, and Miroku didn't seem to be worried at all, but Inuyasha could tell that bastard was trying as hard as he could to hold it in. His ears flattened. Sesshoumaru was going to hurt himself worse if he kept this up.**

Not wanting to bother with the ungrateful jerk any more than necessary, he turned and looked for Miroku, who he realized was missing. He found him a moment later, standing knee-deep in the water. "Oy, Miroku."

"Yes?" Miroku paused in his search for his left sandal. Standing, he looked over his shoulder at Inuyasha.

"Stay out of the water. I don't wanna have to save your ass, too. That youkai might still be in there." Inuyasha crossed his arms and shook his head slightly, only now realizing the horrible water that swished around in his ears.

Miroku appeared surprised. "There's no youki here, aside from Sesshoumaru's. I doubt the lake poses any danger."

_So he killed it, then._ A great weight lifted from Inuyasha's shoulders, and he allowed himself to relax, no longer needing to be on guard. Now that it was safe and Sesshoumaru didn't appear to be in any immediate danger from anything, except perhaps himself, Inuyasha quickly went to work getting the water out of his ears, and wringing out his hair. _No wonder he's so uptight about this._ Inuyasha thought. _Killing the damn thing and then dying is probably worse than just failing to kill it outright._ Inuyasha knew he'd have probably been just as embarrassed in Sesshoumaru's stead. _Still, he doesn't have to be so ungrateful about it, and acting perfectly fine when he's obviously—_

_Hey!_ Inuyasha had absently glanced in Sesshoumaru's direction, only to discover that Sesshoumaru was on his feet and attempting to leave. He was only about ten feet from him, but he'd been so absorbed in his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed. _Jeez. This is what happens when I think too hard._ He took a step toward Sesshoumaru, intending to stop him.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru watched Inuyasha's back, eyes narrowed at the offensive response. How dare he answer him in that manner? Did he think he wasn't a threat in this state? Oh he would show him what was fascinating about himself, his claws. He watched Inuyasha turn his attention on the monk. He readied himself, about to raise his hand to claw Inuyasha (very much intending to poison him while he was at it) but Inuyasha's next words made him freeze instantly.

"Stay out of the water. I don't wanna have to save your ass, too. That youkai might still be in there."

Sesshoumaru's mind back peddled quickly, the words leaving him slightly stunned. _He didn't know..? Hadn't he realized? He can't really be that stupid. _But apparently Inuyasha could be. Sesshoumaru was slightly irradiated to be related to such a dense creature, but was mostly thankful. _Maybe.. I can leave without him __noticing. If I stay to long, even Inuyasha will figure out what happened, and there is no need for any MORE embarrassment today._ Slowly he stood, his legs feeling weaker then normal, causing his balance to be off. He felt his body sway, and naturally he was to stubborn to acknowledge the weakness in his legs that were begging for him to get his weight off them. He then moved his leg forward slightly to take the first step to freedom, but of course Inuyasha in his annoying way spotted him.

Sesshoumaru saw him jump to his feet and take a step toward him in one hasty movement. Sesshoumaru immediately tried to step backward away from him, only to his dismay and utter horror, his ankle hit his armor (which was still laying innocently on the ground) his balance failed, and he fell backward with a loud thud, his legs draped over the armor, staring up at the sky with widened eyes. His hair was thrown across the grass and messy, bangs sticking to his face still damp from the lake, lips parted in mute shock at what had just happened to him. _...I should have drowned._


	2. Chapter 2

_**~~~~~~~~~ CONTINUED NOW SEPTEMBER 29, 2010 ~~~~~~~~~**_

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

When Sesshoumaru fell, everything went dead silent for a few seconds, as if everyone's hearts had stopped, as if everyone had forgotten how to breathe. Then, as suddenly as it came on, it was over.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, are you okay?" Rin called, rushing to his side and attempting to re-organize his hair. The toad shrank further in on himself, as if he were trying to pretend it didn't happen. Miroku continued his search for his shoe, pointedly ignoring what went on behind him.

Inuyasha, however, was trying desperately not to roll on the ground laughing. He clapped one hand over his mouth, then another, as he sank to his knees. Sesshoumaru tried to ignore all of this, closing his eyes, likely trying to will himself dead. The girl continued to ramble on and on about how she should have moved his armor but hadn't thought to do it and that Sesshoumaru-sama should be careful since he's not well yet. Whatever else came spilling out of her mouth Inuyasha didn't notice in his struggle to keep from laughing.

He didn't mean to make this so much worse than it was. Inuyasha just couldn't help it. The way his proud brother had fallen, splayed in such a state of disarray… there was just something about it Inuyasha couldn't help but think was hilarious. All the same, he knew bursting out laughing was not going to help the situation. So he held his breath until the urge subsided, coughing as he finally let up.

Had Kagome been around, she would have been proud of him. Inuyasha, however, felt slightly cheated. He _deserved_ to be able to laugh at Sesshoumaru, after all he'd done to Inuyasha. He_deserved_ to be able to yell at him for being an idiot. As far as Inuyasha was concerned, this sensitivity shit sucked. The only reason he'd stuck with it thus far was that he remembered the sound of Sesshoumaru's faltering heart, so fresh in his mind.

His heart. Inuyasha started, his eyes widening. Sesshoumaru's heart was pounding. At first, Inuyasha had thought it had been embarrassment, but the pounding continued to build. Inuyasha felt the heat of anger on his face and the ice of panic down his back. He closed the distance between himself and Sesshoumaru in an instant. Finally had it, Inuyasha pulled his arm back, and punched Sesshoumaru squarely in the jaw. He didn't punch him hard enough to cause any damage, but enough to jar Sesshoumaru and to make Inuyasha feel a bit better.

Sesshoumaru gasped deeply and his eyes snapped open, startled at first as he coughed, then filling with anger as he gingerly reached to touch his jaw. He growled at Inuyasha, and poison dripped from his other clawed hand. Inuyasha didn't care.

"You're an asshole!" he shouted at Sesshoumaru.

"Inuyasha-san—" Rin pleaded, wide eyed and obviously very confused and upset by the turn of events. The toad turned 'round, ready to defend his master.

Inuyasha ignored the both of them. "I saved your life, didn't yell at you when you threw up on me, didn't make fun of you for getting in that mess, kept you safe—I even didn't laugh at you when you fell! And you think you can just… just…" Inuyasha was shaking with anger and a hint of fear, but that wasn't what stopped him. No, it was Sesshoumaru's eyes that stopped him.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru was stunned by a suddenly sting to his jaw, his head forced to the side, his traitorous lips parting to allow a gasp. His eyes snapped open and turned to stare at Inuyasha. He lifted a hand to touch his jaw, narrowing his eyes quickly. He had forgotten to breath, he was so caught up for wishing for death that he hadn't felt his own lungs begging for air.

His eyes however began to widen without his acknowledgement as he listened to Inuyasha rant and rave at him. _He was worried..? He was upset because.. of..?_ Looking up at Inuyasha, he noticed true fear in the back of his eyes, under all the anger. He was afraid because he thought he was going to loose him today.. For once Sesshoumaru's stubborn pride didn't make him glare at Inuyasha, instead he just stared at him, completely shocked at the sudden obvious affection he was receiving. He had done so much to this hanyou and yet.. here he was saving him without a second thought, and.. and apparently pissed that he had stopped breathing? Inuyasha's chain of words suddenly came to a halt as he continued to stare at him.

_What could this hanyou be thinking… why would he even care?_

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

Sesshoumaru was staring at him. Not in anger, but simply... simply what? Is was the same look Sesshoumaru had cast in his direction after their fight with Shishinki. No, not quite. It unnerved Inuyasha, seeing Sesshoumaru look at him in such a way.

"What-what are you giving me that look for?" Inuyasha sounded more irritated than he felt at the moment, his voice still holding some of his earlier anger, anger that had partially melted under Sesshoumaru's stunned(?) expression. _He tries to kill himself after all I did, and then he looks at ME like I was the one who did something wrong._ His ears flattened further, though they twitched a bit now, betraying his emotions.

**(Miroku's POV)**

Miroku had long since found his left sandal, but remained where he was, listening to the scene behind him. _Inuyasha..._

Miroku realized, when Inuyasha had asked him to leave the water, that Inuyasha didn't understand the situation at hand. To be fair, Miroku hadn't quite understood either before then, though he had a good guess. With confirmation that Sesshoumaru had been conscious, however, there was no doubt. Sesshoumaru had overestimated his abilities when young Rin found herself in trouble, and was unable to save himself afterward. Or maybe, that had been his intention. It was entirely possible that Sesshoumaru had knowingly sacrificed himself for the girl. Stranger things have happened.

The current situation, however, worried Miroku. He had been thinking that maybe they should back off, since Sesshoumaru was already embarrassed enough by the rescue and his apparent weakness, and apparently Miroku didn't seem to be off the mark. Whether an intentional suicide attempt or not, Sesshoumaru was clearly overwhelmed.

He turned around slowly, surveying the scene. Perhaps, if he removed Jaken and Rin, that might make him a little more comfortable. He knew he wouldn't be able to get Inuyasha to leave Sesshoumaru alone. Though, looking at the two of them, maybe that was best for now, especially considering night would fall soon.

Trying not to be noticed by either Sesshoumaru or Inuyasha, Miroku made his way over to Jaken and Rin, unsure of how to bait them to leave. "Perhaps we should head back to the village for the night. It's not good to stay out here so late." He was quiet, not wanting to disturb the others. Jaken started to protest, but Rin silenced him with her hand, replying "Yes, Houshi-sama." She glanced back in Sesshoumaru's direction. "He'll be safe with Inuyasha-san."

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru thought process slowed and finally halted. He was to tired to try and figure his brother out right now. His brother was to complicated to even begin trying at the moment. Whatever his reasons, Sesshoumaru knew it was because he cared. He mentally stored this information for later taunting tactics. (He was going to need all the ammo he could find if he was ever going to live with the days events.)

He heard movement near the lake, and knew what the monk had in plan as soon as he moved toward Jaken and Rin. Sesshoumaru chose to ignore him, instead keeping his eyes locked with Inuyasha's. _That monk is rather.. intelligent.. Maybe thats why Inuyasha keeps him around. He certainty can't think on his own._

He stood silently again, eyeing a tree on the edge of the clearing, planning on resting against it, so he would at least be comfortable. He stood there, noting the fact that he was swaying slightly. Why was he taking so long to recover? This was truly getting pathetic on his part. He clenched his teeth in determination, and took a step forward, unfortunately his knees decided it was a good time to buckle, and he fell forward.. right toward Inuyasha who was still standing just a couple feet in front of him.

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

Inuyasha wordlessly reached forward and caught Sesshoumaru, finally letting go of his agitation. Inuyasha realized that there was more going on here than he knew, but he did understand one thing: Sesshoumaru didn't know how to be hurt, how to need help. Inuyasha was that way once, too, before Kagome and the others came along. Inuyasha wasn't sure he had what it took to help Sesshoumaru overcome that, hell, he _knew_ he probably wasn't enough. And he certainly wasn't going to try, beyond what was needed to get him to survive today. Still, the reason Sesshoumaru was taking so long to recover was obvious. It took him forever and a day to realize it, but now that he had, he resigned himself to just mild frustration.

Inuyasha sighed, and, not allowing Sesshoumaru a chance to find his feet and stubbornly try again, he lifted him into his arms, intending to carry him over to a tree at the edge of the clearing.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru stiffened at he felt his brother catch him. His first thought was to throw him off him, but he knew that if he tried he would do one of two things, One he would probably fall over again from the effort, Two he would show Inuyasha how weak he was, effectually making him realize that he had the upper hand right now.

Time seemed to stand still for him. Sesshoumaru listened to Inuyasha's heart, it was beating a mile a minute, and his breathing was uneven. _What could he be thinking..?_ Inuyasha was probably storing some of this information in his head to use against him later, if he had any brains. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes in defeat, catching his breath. He was stuck, there was nothing he could do, anything he DID do would only push Inuyasha closer to the truth, or make him do something incredibly embarrassing again.

All at once time sped up, Inuyasha seemed to come to a conclusion as he sighed causing Sesshoumaru to open his eyes. Suddenly Sesshoumaru's feet were touching nothing but air. It took Sesshoumaru a few moments to realize what happened, but when he did, he was not pleased. _This Hanyou.. picked I, Sesshoumaru up…_ He twitched ever so slightly at the thought of this. The anger though it rose.. fell quicker then normal. He was to tired to even really feel angry.

Sesshoumaru closed his eyes again feeling his body urge him to rest, he fought it as best as he could, not wanting to fall asleep in Inuyasha's arms… but he lost the battle as he fell into a some-what light sleep. His hand that was currently hanging limply to his side subconsciously lifted to rest over his own stomach, his clawed fingers twisted into Inuyasha's shirt and held onto it firmly, as if he was afraid the familiar presence would vanish if he let go.

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

_Wow, he's lighter than I thought. He only weighs about as much as Kagome._ This was an odd concept to Inuyasha. For some reason, he'd expected his older brother to weigh a lot more, even sans armor and fur. As if power weighed something, or age.

Inuyasha had been ready for Sesshoumaru to struggle, trying to free himself. What he had _not_expected was for Sesshoumaru to fall asleep. Inuyasha had taken all of about five steps, and the bastard was already gone. Asleep. In Inuyasha's arms. Inuyasha was very certain that he wouldn't have been able to do the same, if their positions were reversed. He wouldn't have felt safe enough, as if Sesshoumaru were to kill him the moment he closed his eyes.

Inuyasha's thought process was abruptly interrupted when he felt a tugging on his shirt. Confused, he glanced down at the youkai. Inuyasha froze mid-step; Sesshoumaru's hand was clutching at Inuyasha's shirt, fingers curled in the fabric. For a long few moments Inuyasha could only stare stupidly at him, before his mind could form coherent thoughts. _Why?_

Throughout the whole of Inuyasha's life, Sesshoumaru had wanted him as far away as possible. If Inuyasha ever offered anything, Sesshoumaru stubbornly refused it. He'd even nearly let the both of them be killed by Shishinki, just because he would have to accept Tessaiga's influence on Tenseiga. Hell, even today, just a few minutes ago, Sesshoumaru was killing himself just so that he wouldn't have to accept Inuyasha's help, and now... Now, under the guise of sleep, he was clutching to Inuyasha as if he were afraid that the _hanyou_ would leave him.

Sesshoumaru stirred a little, and Inuyasha realized he'd still been standing there, holding him. Picking his face back up, slightly embarrassed, he carried Sesshoumaru over to the tree and laid him down against it. Or tried to, anyway. When he went to pull himself back up, he was halted by Sesshoumaru's hand still clutching at him. He let out a surprised "ah!" as he caught himself to keep from falling. "Jeez," he whispered, and tried to pry Sesshoumaru's hand from his shirt, trying not to wake him.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru fingers wouldn't let go, instead they pulled him closer, his face twisting in hurt at the refusal he was receiving. A small tug of war started to happen, he would pull him closer and Inuyasha would pull away.

Sesshoumaru's dream.. _nightmare_ was horrible. He was a mere inch from a deep pool of water and another embarrassing situation. The only thing that was keeping him from being sucked back into the depths, that would surely kill him this time, was the presence of someone he was missing in his life, someone that he wanted there deep down.

He stared at the water, all of his painful memories seemed to be reflecting off the surface. He saw his fathers face looking at him in disappointment, The night he heard of his fathers death, the Tessaiga, Rin lifeless in his arms, his failures in battles, him sitting by a fire alone yet again. He then saw himself staring at him with a cold hatred, he almost flinched at the look,_Could he really look like that?_ He pulled at the presence almost in panic as he felt himself being drawn toward the water and his own cruel face. He couldn't place the name.. all he knew was he wanted.. _needed_ the presence in a way that he wasn't ready to admit. He didn't want to fall back into that water.. he didn't want to be alone again.. to ever look like _that_ again... he didn't want to drown in those memories.

His sleeping face twisted in confused hurt as the presence continued to fight to get away.. he muttered, begged softly "Please.. Don't leave me." A few moments later, he growled deeply in his sleep and tugged Inuyasha sharply toward him, a arm slipping around his lower back, and another around his shoulders. Inuyasha was now pressed against the youkai, his cheek against his chest.

Sesshoumaru seemed to relax and let out a breath of relief. He lowered his head and rested it on top of Inuyasha's murmuring "Stay with me."

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

Inuyasha's mind scrambled over itself, tripped, backpedalled, tried again, and repeated the process. _Wha-why-how..._ He was pinned to the chest of his bastard brother, that much he could confirm. Sesshoumaru had said "Please... Don't leave me," and "Stay with me." Try as he might to pretend he heard wrong, there was no denying it. But... _Why?_

He could tell that Sesshoumaru had been having a nightmare. A nightmare that now seemed to be fading now that Inuyasha was so close, judging by his heart rate. Inuyasha knew some people acted weird in their sleep, but this... this was more than—

Oh. _He thinks I'm the old man..._ It made sense. Inuyasha's presence had to be at least somewhat similar, and he doubted that Sesshoumaru had done a lot of sleeping since his death. But still...

Inuyasha stared at the chest below him. _He'll be pissed when he wakes up and realizes it's me._He tried to see if he could remove himself without waking Sesshoumaru, but his heart began to show signs of panic, and he pulled Inuyasha tighter. He stopped. This wasn't going to work. Sesshoumaru had already regained enough strength that Inuyasha was at a disadvantage in this position. He _could_ wake Sesshoumaru up now, but he hadn't totally recovered. But if he stayed there, they might be in danger, since Inuyasha wasn't in any position to protect them. He sighed. "Jeez..."

Inuyasha glanced at Tessaiga and Tenseiga. Would they be able to protect them, if Inuyasha couldn't in this situation? He hoped so. If Sesshoumaru woke now and found himself in this position, he would leave as fast as he could, and Inuyasha wasn't sure he could stop him this time.

Time pressed on, and the weight of the day began to weigh heavily on Inuyasha. With his cheek against Sesshoumaru's chest, ear against his steady beating heart, he drifted into sleep.

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru slowly drifted awake a few hours later. First thing he noticed was he was laying on his side. The second thing he noticed was there was a lot more white hair then there should have been.. the third thing he noticed was there was a very much asleep Inuyasha curled against his chest, his legs and arms tangled around his own.

Sesshouamru blinked once. Twice. And then a third time as he starred down at his brother. _Why hadn't I noticed…?_ He tried to think about what had happened. He had fallen asleep against his will in his brothers arms.. and then he was by a lake.. and someone was with him.. someone that he really wanted there.. he was clutching to them.. shit.

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened when he realized what had happened. He had been clutching to_Inuyasha._ He tried to get angry, he tried as best as he could… but it was his fault, he had done it. He couldn't blame Inuyasha.. he had more honor then that, but he _could_ be irritated that Inuyasha hadn't pulled away. Just the thought that he hadn't pulled away had brought up confusion and questions that Sesshoumaru didn't know the answers too, and he hated not knowing things.

He saw Inuyasha's ear flick in his sleep, and stared at it. He had looked at them many times in disgust, but now.. he looked at them and wondered what it was like to have them. He reached up and touched his own pointed ear. He couldn't move his, but he had been able to figure out Inuyasha's moods and thoughts because his ears betrayed them.

_What a horrible.. he should learn to control them.._ Sesshoumaru completely ignored his own hand as he reached forward and tweaked Inuyasha's ears. He stared into space as if he was unaware of his own hands actions as it moved around the ear, studying it.

**(Inuyasha's POV)**

Inuyasha mumbled quietly as he drifted awake, aware of someone stroking his ears. _Kagome?_His eyes slid open first, his nose registering the presence in front of him in the same moment. He blinked once, twice. _What the hell..._

"Sesshou...maru?"

**(Sesshoumaru's POV)**

Sesshoumaru seemed to ignore the fact Inuyasha was now very much awake. Instead he stroked his ear a couple more times, eyes focused on the the interesting air in front of him. Then slowly, his hand slipped away and fell onto Inuyashas shoulders, laying their limply. He closed his eyes, in hopes Inuyasha would think he was petting him in his sleep.. and had just happened to open his eyes? Inuyasha _was_ stupid.. but was he THAT stupid? His struggled to control his heart beat, as he felt slight embarrassment at being caught by his brother. He finally chose to speak, not wanting to be called out on his "sleeping" act.

"Don't you dare comment on that action."

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


End file.
